The invention relates broadly to a stationarily-mounted seating structure, such as is used in row formation in an auditorium, theater, or the like. More specifically, the present invention pertains to a seating structure having a plurality of individual seat assemblies aligned in a row that each include an electrical outlet and at least one data outlet in one of the side supports for each seat assembly.
Stationarily-mounted seating structures are typically mounted to the floor of an auditorium, theater or the like, and generally include an aligned row of individual seats that each have a pair of side supports, with a seat and a seat back disposed between and mounted to the side supports. This type of seating structure is often used in large auditoriums in which educational classes or other lectures are given. For example, such seating structures are often found in university auditoriums or lecture halls.
In recent years, laptop computers have become increasingly popular and are used by a large number of people on a daily basis. At some universities, for example, each student is required to have a laptop computer which is used by the student during interactive multimedia classes. During such classes, the student's laptop computer is plugged into a computer network and each student participates in the lecture and accesses data over the university's computer network. In this type of classroom or lecture hall, a row of students sit behind a work surface in the form of a continuous desktop on seating which may or may not be interconnected with the supporting structure of the desktop. The desktop includes a plurality of spaced data outlets into which the students can connect their laptop computers. While in class, students operate their laptop computers off the internal battery contained within the laptop computer. Currently, these internal batteries have only a limited battery life before they need to be recharged by plugging the laptop into an electrical outlet. Thus, if the lecture or presentation lasts for an extended period of time, students operating laptop computers from battery power must either shut down their computer or plug their computer into an electrical outlet in the lecture hall to recharge the internal batteries.
It has been known to provide electrical outlets at spaced locations along the desktop for receiving the plug of a computer or other accessory. However, electrification systems of this type are typically mounted to the desktop separate from the seating. It is not generally known to provide power and data outlets on seating separate from the desktop, such as in auditorium or theater seating in which the work surface typically consists of a separate tablet arm mounted to each seat for movement between an operative, use position and an inoperative, storage position.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a stationarily-mounted seating structure that includes a plurality of individual seat assemblies that each includes both an electrical outlet and a data outlet for each of the seat occupants. It is a further object of the invention to provide a seating structure that conceals the electrical and data wires within the seating structure. It is a further object of the invention to provide an electrical wireway within each individual seat assembly that allows the seating structure to be easily configured to include a user-selected number of individual seat assemblies. A still further object of the invention is to provide a seating structure having a single, concealed electrification connection for supplying electrical power to the entire seating structure and a single, concealed connection to a main data terminal for the data lines contained within the seating structure. An additional object of the invention is to provide a seating structure including a movable support tablet on each of the seat assemblies that can support a laptop computer plugged into the electrical and data outlets.
In accordance with one aspect of the invention, a seating structure is constructed having a row of spaced individual seat assemblies. Each individual seat assembly includes an electrical outlet and at least one data outlet, which are preferably mounted to a structural side support of the seat assembly. Each of the individual seat assemblies includes a concealed wireway formed in the seat back, which extends between a pair of the spaced side supports. The wireway in each seat back is in communication with the wireways formed in the adjacent seat assemblies such that a main electrical conduit and a plurality of data lines can pass between the seat assemblies through the aligned electrical wireways. A branch electrical conduit extends from the electrical outlet available on each seat assembly through one of the side supports and joins the main electrical conduit contained in the wireway to provide electrical power to the electrical outlet. Likewise, one of the data lines extends through the side support and is joined to the data outlet. In the preferred embodiment of the invention, the electrical outlet and data outlet are each conveniently mounted to the right side support of each seat assembly.
In accordance with yet another aspect of the invention, each seat assembly preferably includes an oversized rotatable support tablet that is large enough to accommodate the size of a conventional laptop computer, such that the support tablet can support the laptop when the laptop is coupled to the data outlet and electrical outlet of the seat assembly. In another feature of the invention, only one seat assembly in the row of seat assemblies includes an infeed electrical conduit for supplying electrical power to the entire row of seat assemblies. Preferably, the infeed electrical conduit passes through only one of the side supports contained in the entire seating structure such that electrical power can be conveniently distributed throughout the seating structure. An infeed data input/output connection also passes through only one of the side supports of the seating structure, such that each data outlet in the entire row of seat assemblies can be coupled to a main data terminal through the infeed data connection.
In accordance with yet another aspect of the invention, each individual seating assembly includes an enclosed wireway that conceals and protects the electrical wiring and data lines within the seating structure. A power/data divider is mounted in each of the wireways to separate the electrical wiring from the data lines.
Various other features, objects and advantages of the invention will be made apparent from the following description taken together with the drawings.